Selim II

Selim II was the eleventh sultan of the Ottoman Empire, who ruled from 1566 to 1574. He was the son of Suleiman the Magnificent and Hurrem Sultan, and the father of Murad III. He was known as Selim the Blond or Selim the Drunk, due to his fair hair and his fondness for wine. He was the first sultan who did not actively participate in military campaigns, and delegated the state affairs to his grand vizier, Mehmed Sokollu, and his wife, Nurbanu Sultan. He was also the first sultan who married his concubine, Nurbanu, who was the mother of his heir and most of his children. Selim's reign saw peace in Europe and Asia, and the rise of the Ottoman dominance in the Mediterranean. He signed the Treaty of Adrianople with the Holy Roman Emperor, Maximilian II, in 1568, which ended the Austrian-Turkish War and granted the Ottomans authority in Moldavia and Walachia. He also launched the Siege of Cyprus in 1570, which resulted in the Ottoman conquest of the island in 1571. However, he also suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of the Holy League armada led by the Spanish Empire in the naval Battle of Lepanto in 1571, in which the Ottoman fleet was destroyed. Selim died on 15 December 1574, due to head injuries sustained from a fall in his bath. He was buried in Hagia Sophia, next to his father and his wife. He was succeeded by his son, Murad III, who continued his father's policies and patronage of arts and culture.